The Lycanthrope Paradox
by maddy-liddell
Summary: Loki's fall into the abyssal maw of madness.
1. Chapter 1

The treachery of fools loosens the binds that uphold order. In the kingdom of Asgard, there are no exceptions, even to Odin's dying judgment.

The father lied in his celestial bed as the people watched his very being fade. Doomed was his fate by the hand of Fenris who drove a poisoned dagger made of molten steel through his chest at the battle of Ragnarok.

It was a dark hour for the realm as feral lycanthropes ravaged the city to drink fresh Asgardian blood. The bodies of the innocent were taken from their peaceful stature and cursed to join Fenris' army before their souls could seek eternal sanctuary. Armed guards and the aerial fleet of the valkyries fought the twisted remnants of their friends who bore a bloodlust wolfish grin.

Thor fought to keep the lycanthropes out while Loki barricaded the castle in a field of energy. At Odin's bedside, Frigga prayed for a miracle.

But in a solid moment, all the hope in the kingdom was lost. Odin's essence faded from existence and the bonds of his protection lifted. In the sky above, a grand silver moon turned blood red. Its devilish light glowed a bright red over the lost kingdom.

The fighting had ended. The lycanthropes leaped to the highest spot they could find and howled victory to summon Fenris. The old god bore his very claws through time and space itself, tearing the threads apart to enter Asgard. The half man, half wolf threw his head back, letting out a boisterous howl before making his way to the main castle.

"He comes! We must get to Valhalla." Loki suggested. Valhalla was the prized realm Odin created so that warriors who fell in battle could seek an eternity of peace and merriment. Existing outside of the realms itself, Valhalla stood to be the final sanctuary to ensure the survival of the Asgardian people.

With Odin dead, Frigga bore the ability to open the gates. She complied with Loki, using up as much energy as she could muster to pry the ancient gates open. A ring of white light was drawn in the blood-red sky above the kingdom. As beams of light shone down, the dead, those who weren't cursed, and the people in the castle rose to join their fallen brethren in Valhalla. Fenris made haste as the beast charged at the castle. Loki held up his barrier as best he could while Thor assisted, using the power of thunder itself to enhance and energize the arcane shield. In Odin's chamber, only the two brothers and Frigga remained. "We must leave!" Frigga shouted. Her body was becoming weak from holding the portal open. "Go first! I will join you!" Loki shouted in reply. Fenris pounded his fists at Loki's shield, ravaged it with his claws, gnawed with his razor-like teeth, doing everything he could possibly do to break through. "I will not leave you brother!" Thor was too stubborn to leave him behind. "I will be right behind you! I swear it!" With a mighty lunge, Fenris shattered the energy field, throwing Loki, Thor, and Frigga back in the process. Frigga and Thor were swallowed by light. "There is no time!" Frigga's voice cracked in sorrow as she watched her adopted son lie against the chamber wall. "No! Release me!" Thor tried to break away from Frigga to reach out at Loki, but with a flash of light, the pair had vanished and the portal to Valhalla was closed.

Fenris dug his claws into the window of Odin's chamber, tearing the wall and roof off as he peered down menacingly at Loki. The lycanthropes all circled around him, perched on the ruins and staring down as if hungry.


	2. Chapter 2

The wolf's vicious gaze sent shivers along Loki's spine. Awaiting his obvious demise, the male kept his lips sealed as Fenris analyzed him. "You are like a rabbit trapped under the maw of the feral. Your friends have all but abandoned you Loki." His tone was low and ominous. "I am waiting…" Loki replied. Fenris squinted his eyes in surprise from hearing the demigod speak. "Waiting? To be eaten? This would have been the case—had you have been the real son of Odin." Fenris pulled his head away, getting comfortable as he addressed Loki. "Your words are numbing. Do you not recognize the face of dynasty when you see?" "I recognize much. You are like them…" Fenris pointed at the idle lycanthropes hanging around. "…A wolf in sheep skin. Your birth served as a haunting treaty for Odin. You were closer to a plague than you were to his bloodline." Loki's face showed anger more than fear. It was like a wolf to be cunning with words. "You know naught of which you speak."

Fenris flashed a toothy grin at Loki's words. He inhaled deeply then blew a chill of frigid air into Odin's chamber. The entirety of the room was coated in ice, the air felt dense and misty; the tiled floor gleamed with tiny ice crystals. "Do you feel that? Does this not feel homely to you, Loki?" The wolf teased the demigod with a ploy of words and expression to his own amusement. "I tire of this. I tire of you!" Loki reached for his staff and charged Fenris, but the wolf lowered himself to snap a bite at the tiny male. Loki moved aside to dodge the bite then countered by forcing a small fire spark to burst at the wolf's nose. Fenris howled in slight agony at the tender pain. He threw his hand in the room, clutching Loki to the floor with his claws locked into the tiles. Fenris dragged him closer and closer as the demigod squirmed to break free. "See you soon." Fenris brought Loki to his mouth, drawing him in swiftly to eat him. Loki was thrashed around in the saliva'd cavern of Fenris' abysmal maw. But suddenly the struggle began to lessen. The wolf's tongue felt more like solid ground, and the hot air became cold and sweet. The saliva was less dense and pinged at the man's skin like raindrops. The darkness in the maw gave way for light to breach it and reveal the oddity of the situation. Loki turned his head, analyzing the area around him as he noticed it looked like… "Earth?" he whispered. The male sat in a field of thin grass overlooking a slender valley of wildflowers and human cottages. He held his hand out, watching as spring rain rolled down the back of his palm.


	3. Chapter 3

He couldn't return to Asgard in its current state and Valhalla was out of reach. The only logical approach Loki had was to wander into human civilization. A billow of steam pouring out from the chimney of a weather-beaten cottage was his northstar for the journey ahead. Loki traversed the field, holding a hand to his torso to keep pressure against his wounds. "Any chance I can get a port to Valhalla?" Loki whispered as he gazed up into the cloudy morning sky. "I take that as a no?" His words fell on deaf ears. He knew well the chance that his words would be heard by survivors or by Thor and Frigga. Of course, the chance of being redeemed to Odin's prized realm was relatively slim due to contract of "warrior's death" being the only form of permit beside the dynasty approach which Frigga displayed in Odin's chamber. However… Loki paused in his tracks to ponder for a moment. There was hope indeed. The pantheon on Earth could redirect him to Frigga's side. It acted a celestial beacon to keep the gods from getting lost as they moved about the realms. The only problem was getting to the pantheon. Loki had no idea where he even was.

"I must reach that town." He whispered to himself. Loki continued his stray to the town below, eager to make a hasty trip to Valhalla.

"Wait! Stop!" a female voice called out. Loki turned his attention to a tiny woman who stared down at the male's feet in anguish. "My flowers…" she whispered. Loki gazed down at the crushed flowers under his boots. "My apologizes. I was not looking." The woman tried to flash an awkward smile. "It's alright." Her eyes gazed to the male's torso, noticing his hand pressing firmly against it. "Are you injured?" she inquired. Loki didn't want much to do with human interaction, however it was necessary given the circumstances. "I am. Can you offer me aid?" The woman nodded before making a curling gesture with her fingers to get Loki to follow. She led him to her quaint cottage at the nook of the valley, guiding him inside by grasping her hand at his arm to pull him in as he stared off to admire the scenery. "What attacked you?" she asked as she prepared some bandages and medicine. "I'm sorry?" it was difficult for Loki to answer. The affairs of the gods and godlike were not for mortal ears. "What attacked you in the field? How are you hurt? Lift your shirt." She spared no expense in letting him answer. Loki's tongue nearly tied as he tried to speak and act simultaneously. "Eden." She proclaimed. Her blue hues gazed up into Loki's as she spoke. "My name." Loki shrugged at her introduction while holding his shirt up to reveal his wound. "Aren't you going to tell me your name?" she asked. "Oh. Uh, John." Loki struggled with petty talk, trying to make the conversation as short as possible. "And your real name?" Eden was as stubborn as she was smart. At least that's how she appeared to be. Loki gave in, he at least owed her that much. "Loki." He sighed. Eden dabbed a wet cloth at his wound then dabbed a bit of alcohol on it. Loki flinched from the tingling sensation. "Looks like you were in quite a fight, Loki." Eden showed curiosity in his wound as she tended to it. "Was it a bear?" "Yes. A big… smelly bear. I scared it off." Eden chuckled to herself then wrapped his torso up with a roll of linen bandages. "I'm sorry, I don't get many visitors around here." Eden pulled up a chair for Loki to sit in then served him a cup of tea. He could tell she wanted to keep him around as long as possible though her hospitality was almost terrifying. "I can tell."


	4. Chapter 4

"I cannot stay long. There is much work I need to address with haste." Loki proclaimed. He stood up from his seat and turned only to see the woman block his path quickly. "What kind of business?" she inquired. Loki scrunched his eyebrows in, feeling a bit of concern for the sanity of Eden. "Um, cows?" His matters were private, but his blunder in word-choosing opted the woman's obvious intelligent curiosity. "Try again." Loki kept his lips sealed and glanced around the room to find a diversion. Pulling his hand behind his back, he gently rubbed the tip of index finger into his thumb to conjure up a tiny spark on the surface of the table. "Fire!" he proclaimed. "Fire?" Eden cocked her head to the side but the flicker of light that reflected on Loki's pale skin caught her eye. "Oh!" As Eden tried desperately to put the fire out by waving heavy cloaks and fabric at it, Loki dashed out of the cottage. Having no lead to find the pantheon was better than spending another moment with that woman, clearly.

As Loki got farther away, he noticed the fire at the cottage had escalated until the roof had caught ablaze. Eden nervously ran around tossing buckets of well water at the flames to put it out but to no avail. Her home was gripped by the fire and choked by the blackened smoke. Not bearing to see the ending, Loki pressed on towards the forest. It was difficult to figure out location and the tall trees that towered over Loki bared a discouraging welcome more than a friendly one. The further he walked, the more vile the environment felt. The lush canopies of leaves above nearly blocked much of the morning light that struggled to seep through, the sounds of birds lessened to give way for exotic feral noises, and a thick blanket of chilling fog began to roll through. Loki could see no more than three trees length in front of him as he made his way through, walking forcefully through crunchy leaves and obtuse rocky angles. He knew naught what he'd find or if he'd come to the end of the forest. However…

Loki paused in his steps. He had grown used to the noise he was making as he traversed the forest. But a shuffle above him caused alarm. He held his staff up, drawing in magical energy to lightly blast away some of the fog around him to reveal more of the immediate area. As he waved his arm and looked up to the treetops, a branch snapped off to land at his feet. It was followed by a lowly growl. "Lycanthropes…" Loki made a quick dash, leaping over the rough terrain as the sounds of branches snapping and leaves rustling grew greater. The threat was not in his vision, but he could hear the heavy breathing as if it were drawn an inch away. A tanned fiend leapt out in front of the demigod. It howled menacingly as thick saliva dripped from its canines. Loki blasted the lycanthrope away to give himself more time to make an escape. The enraged beast made chase on all fours but simple bad luck allowed Loki freedom. The male slipped into a hidden trench, sliding into a vat of mud and leaves at the bottom. The lycanthrope continued onward until it's heavy breathing and charging could no longer be heard. "Yuck…" Loki wiped the mud away from his face as he assessed the trench he was in. The pit was fairly steep, clearly made by hand, and appeared freshly laid out. He placed his hands on the cold loose soil wall to see if he could find a grip to climb his way out, but the soil smoothed out of place to land in the mud. "Need a hand?" Loki immediately looked up to see Eden staring down at him. It was a surprise none-the-less to see this woman. No doubt he had fallen in her pit. Loki remained speechless but her sudden appearance but confusion ran like clockwork in his mind. "The beast never chased after you? Is this your pit? What of the fire at the cottage?" The last thing on his mind was finding a way out of the trench. "I dug this pit to catch deer. What of this beast? I've become accustom to this forest and I've yet to encounter feral threats. And the cottage is no more…" She lowered her head out of sadness of loosing her home. "I suspect you had something to do with it considering you fled and left me all alone." Loki was rather speechless. He turned his back to Eden and tried to climb his way out, but his feet slid down the soil wall to toss his body back into the mud. "Need help?" Loki sighed at Eden's words. There was no denying he needed her help. "Yes…" he mumbled. "I'm sorry?" "You devilish woman! I said yes!" Eden chuckled to herself as she lowered a rope to Loki. The male quickly climbed out and brushed more dried mud off his garments. "You owe me a new cottage." Eden crossed her arms and gave off a deadly cold glare. She appeared more of a threat than the beast from earlier. "I had nothing to do with it. I MUST carry on now." Loki began to walk away but Eden followed. "Not even a thank you? You're the coldest guest I've ever had!" "I am not your guest! I appreciate your help but please, will you get lost?" Loki became furious with the woman. Though law forbid him from revealing Asgard nature to her, he felt a slight temptation to set her ablaze or shock her slightly or perhaps just freeze her in place. It didn't help that she continued to badger him. "Do you even know where you're going?" Her question raised a good point. He had no idea where he was walking towards. "I'm looking for the pantheon. It's a large temple, seldom used, has an intricate beacon at the roof—it's old. Have you seen it?" Eden shrugged her shoulders. "No, but I someone who might." "Name and location?" Loki was quick with words. The sooner he could get away, the better. "You'll have to follow me." The woman was quite an annoying tease. But his valiant mission burdened him with finding as much help as possible to secure a hasty trip to Valhalla. "Fine."


End file.
